Modeling of imaging diagnostics for laser plasma interaction experiments with the code PARAX

We have developed a diagnostic simulation tool for the code PARAX to interpret recent measurements of far-field images of the laser light transmitted through a preformed plasma. This includes the complete treatment of the propagation of the light coming from a well-defined region of plasma through the rest of the plasma and all the optics of the imaging system. We have modeled the whole light path, as well as the spatio-temporal integration of the instruments, and the limited collecting aperture for the light emerging out of the plasma. The convolution of computed magnitudes with the plasma and diagnostics transfer functions is indispensable to enable the comparison between experiments and simulations. This tool is essential in the study of the propagation of intense laser beams in plasma media.